Trump considers dropping concerts in US capital after artists drop out

US President Donald Trump has stated on Saturday that he is considering cancelling a series of concerts commemorating the United States' 250th anniversary after several artists dropped out, opting for a speech instead.

The concerts were planned as part of the larger Great American State Fair, a 16-day event running from June 25 to July 10, 2026.

Organisers said the fair, prepared by the Freedom 250 group, would stretch on the National Mall from the US Capitol to the Washington Monument, with concert stages, state pavilions, exhibits, rides, and other attractions spread across the Mall.

But the musical lineup has been hit by a series of cancellations. On Friday, Bret Michaels, frontman of the rock group Poison, was the fifth musician to withdraw from the concerts, saying that the event was not the nonpartisan celebration that he thought it would be.

Organisers have not publicly detailed the reasons for the departures, though the exits have raised questions about the viability of the event as originally envisioned.

In a post on Truth Social on Saturday, Trump suggested the concert series may no longer be necessary if performers continue to back out. He floated the possibility of giving a speech on the National Mall instead, portraying himself as a more powerful draw than any musical act.

"The fact is that I am, according to many, the number one attraction anywhere in the World,” Trump wrote. He added that he gets “much larger audiences than Elvis in his prime” and “does so without a guitar”.

The president said he is "ordering my representatives to look at the feasibility of doing an AMERICA IS BACK Rally."

Freedom 250 is a public-private partnership created by the White House to coordinate celebrations of the United States' 250th anniversary alongside federal agencies.

It remains unclear whether replacement musicians will be recruited or whether Trump’s proposal to substitute a rally for the performances is being seriously considered by organisers.